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|By PR Newswire||
|February 17, 2014 09:37 AM EST||
DUBLIN, Feb. 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/g82cb7/global_online) has announced the addition of the "Global Online Payment Methods Report" report to their offering.
Online and mobile payments are increasing globally, with new channels emerging
The recent ""Global Online Payment Methods 2013 - First Half 2013"" provides information about the worldwide movement toward online and mobile purchase transactions. The report is based on recently published information from a variety of sources and details the latest trends and news on the topic, with projections of continued growth in the next few years.
The emergence of new online payment channels and development of alternative payment methods are expected to drive further growth. Near Field Communication (NFC) based e-wallets came on the scene in 2012 as one of the most promising new mobile payment methods. NFC mobile spending worldwide is expected to increase exponentially by 2017 and account for over half of total mobile payments made worldwide. Hybrid payments combining online and mobile methods are expected to emerge in 2013. MasterCard already introduced such a solution earlier this year, while Visa entered a partnership with Samsung to encourage development of mobile payments. PayPal surpassed its revenue targets in 2012, more than tripling the value of processed payments.
New payment methods build on the infrastructure and consumer preferences already in place, so regional differences exist. In the USA, the major trend on the electronic payment market is the move toward mobile payments. Traditional payment providers, such as card issuers and processors, online payment players, retailers and mobile operators are entering the field in increased masses. The mobile payment transaction value in the USA reached a two-digit figure in billions of Euros in 2012 and is expected to grow further as mobile commerce increases and more brick and mortar stores accept mobile payments.
In Latin America in general, credit card was the most popular payment method in B2C E-Commerce in 2012. In Brazil, the local payment solution Boleto Bancario was used widely, while several payment providers introduced new online and mobile payment tools in the country. In Mexico, cash still dominates the general payment environment, but the use of online card payments was on the rise and is expected to increase further.
In Central Europe, awareness of mobile payment methods was relatively high in 2012, reaching over two-thirds of mobile Internet users in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The usage rates, however, were much lower, reaching a small two-digit percentage share. The most used online payment methods in German B2C E-Commerce in the second half of 2012 were credit card, invoice and PayPal. Mobile NFC-based payments were not yet spread in Germany in 2012, but are expected to increase in use as banks, credit card companies and telecom operators test the technology involved. The Otto Group launched the mobile payment project called Yapital in early 2013.
Key Topics Covered:
1. MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
3. NORTH AMERICA
4. LATIN AMERICA
5. EUROPE (REGIONAL)
6. CENTRAL EUROPE
7. WESTERN EUROPE
8. EASTERN EUROPE
12. MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA
- Bangladesh Post Office
- BNP Paribas
- Google Wallet
- Hana SK
- NTT Docomo
- Otto Group
- Sage Pay
- Telefonica Deutschland
- TOT Money
For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/g82cb7/global_online
Media Contact: Laura Wood , +353-1-481-1716, [email protected]
DevOps is not just last year’s buzzword. Companies with DevOps practices are 2.5x more likely to exceed profitability, market share, and productivity goals. But how do you enable high performance? What can you do right now to start? Find out from DevOps experts including Gene Kim, co-author of "The Phoenix Project," and the Dynatrace Center of Excellence.
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With the proliferation of both SQL and NoSQL databases, organizations can now target specific fit-for-purpose database tools for their different application needs regarding scalability, ease of use, ACID support, etc. Platform as a Service offerings make this even easier now, enabling developers to roll out their own database infrastructure in minutes with minimal management overhead. However, this same amount of flexibility also comes with the challenges of picking the right tool, on the right ...
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Feb. 12, 2016 04:15 PM EST
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(For more market insights, including options activity, click on ; for the Day Ahead newsletter link.reuters.com/mex49s) U.S. stocks slid on Wednesday after legislators in Washington reached a provisional budget deal, which increased investor expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve may wind down its stimulus in the coming months. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 0.53 percent at 15,887.88, the S&P 500 was down 0.75 percent at 1,789.17 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.97 percent at 4,021.096.
** CYTRX CORP, $3.98, +66.53 pct
The company said its experimental cancer drug improved survival rates in soft tissue sarcoma patients without the disease progressing, compared to chemotherapy alone.
** AUTOHOME INC, $29.74, +74.94 pct
Shares of the owner of Chinese auto websites rose as much as 83 percent in their U.S. market debut, valuing the company at about $3.2 billion.
** VALERO ENERGY PARTNERS LP, $28.01, +21.78 pct
Shares of the company rose as much as 24 percent in its market debut, valuing the company at about $1.7 billion.
The company was formed by Valero Energy Corp to operate pipelines and terminals for the transportation of crude oil and refined petroleum products.
** OPKO HEALTH INC, $9.76, -15.13 pct
A report on SeekingAlpha.com said the company is grossly overvalued, adding that “with a run-rate operating loss now exceeding $100 million annually, we believe it is unlikely shareholders will ever see a profit out of Opko”.
The article cites a plethora of reasons including the unlikely commercialization of the company's Alzheimer's test, and its acquisition of Claros Diagnostics - which makes only one product that does not even work. (link.reuters.com/puc45v)
** NANOSTRING, $16.3, +16.01 pct
Brokerage Baird upgraded the medical device maker to “outperform” from “neutral”, according to Theflyonthewall.com.
** GROUPON INC, $10.35, +3.09 pct
Wells Fargo raised its rating on the company’s stock to “outperform”, according to Theflyonthewall.com.
** LABORATORY CORPORATION OF AMERICA HOLDINGS , $88.1, -11.14 pct
** QUEST DIAGNOSTICS, $55.54, -5.22 pct
LabCorp, the laboratory services provider, cut the lower end of its full-year adjusted earnings forecast to a range of $6.90 to $7.05 per share, from $6.95 to $7.05.
Piper Jaffrey and Cannacord Genuity cut their price target on the company’s stock by as much as $24.
LabCorp was the biggest percentage loser on the S&P 500.
Shares of its peer Quest also fell and analysts said weakness in the clinical laboratory industry and reimbursement pressures will continue to weigh on the companies’ results.
** NORTHSTAR REALTY FINANCE CORP, $11.63, +17.00 pct
The diversified commercial real estate investment company said it would spin-off its asset management business into a separate publicly traded company in the form of a tax-free distribution.
NorthStar Asset Management is expected to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange and will also manage company’s non-traded REIT business and own its broker-dealer platform.
** AVANIR PHARMACEUTICALS INC, $3.275, -23.66 pct
The company said its drug used for the treatment of central neuropathic pain in patients with multiple sclerosis failed in a mid-stage trial. There was no difference between the treatment arms and placebo.
Mizuho cut its rating on the company’s stock to “neutral” from “buy”, according to Theflyonthewall.com.
** ARC GROUP WORLDWIDE INC, $21.07, +4.57 pct
Brokerage Brean Capital started the company, which makes equipment used in wireless communication, with a “buy” rating calling it an “attractive asset”, and said it was positive on the advanced technology sector.
** SCRIPPS NETWORKS INTERACTIVE INC, $80.4, +6.84 pct
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Discovery Communications is considering a bid for Scripps Networks, home to the Food Network and HGTV. Discovery’s board discussed making a possible run at the sought-after cable company, according to a report in Variety citing a person with knowledge of the Discovery board meeting.
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** PDC ENERGY INC, $53.81, -7.05 pct
Analysts at SunTrust Robinson cut their price target on the oil and gas producer’s stock to $57 from $68, citing disappointing results from its Utica well in Washington County and the company’s 2014 production forecast which was below Wall Street’s estimate.
** MICROSOFT CORP, $37.595, -1.35 pct
** CISCO SYSTEMS INC, $20.825, -1.82 pct
Europe’s second-highest court upheld a decision by European Union regulators clearing Microsoft’s $8.5 billion takeover of Skype in 2011, rejecting a challenge by the world’s top network equipment maker Cisco.
Citigroup started coverage on Cisco’s stock with a “sell” rating, according to Theflyonthewall.com
** MASTERCARD INC, $793.49, +3.91 pct
The world’s No.2 credit and debit card company, on Tuesday announced a 10-for-1 stock split and raised its quarterly dividend by 83 percent.
At its Tuesday close, MasterCard was the third most expensive stock of the S&P500 Index behind Priceline.com Inc and Google Inc.
** ADVANCED SEMICONDUCTOR ENGINEERING INC $4.82, -4.93 pct
The Taiwan-based provider of integrated circuit packaging and testing services had been ordered by the Kaohsiung city government to suspend operations of a plant in the city after it was found to be leaking toxic wastewater, according to the Taipei Times. (r.reuters.com/guc45v)
Since the company was fined three times for the same violation last year, the Greater Kaohsiung’s Environmental Protection Bureau decided to impose the stiffest fine possible and halt the plant’s operations, the Taipei Times said.
** CHILDREN’S PLACE RETAIL STORES INC, $55.28, +4.92 pct
FBR Capital Markets upgraded its rating on the company’s stock to “outperform” from “market perform,” saying the children’s apparel retailer’s sales would likely be helped by the cold weather.
The brokerage also raised its price target on the stock to $62 from $54.
** ENCANA CORP, $18.33, -4.28 pct
Canada’s largest natural gas producer said it would boost liquids production by 30 percent in 2014 as part of new Chief Executive Doug Suttles’ plan to focus spending on regions rich in gas liquids and oil.
** AVON PRODUCTS INC, $17.09, -4.10 pct
The world’s largest direct seller of cosmetics said it will halt the further roll-out of its order management technology and cut about 650 jobs.
** JOY GLOBAL INC, $52.87, -5.99 pct
The mining equipment maker reported an 87 percent fall in quarterly profit as it took a big charge and coal miners cut spending due to a supply glut and weak prices.
** DEMAND MEDIA INC, $5.85, +8.94 pct
Brokerage JMP Securities upgraded the social media company’s stock to “market outperform” from “market perform” saying that the stock is oversold, with the asset value exceeding the market value by 40 percent.
** EHEALTH INC, $45.3882, +5.80 pct
Jefferies started coverage of the private health insurance exchange’s stock with a “buy” rating, and said the company’s growth trajectory was underappreciated.
EHealth’s online health insurance marketplace positioned the company grow its earnings by 40 percent over 2013 to 2017, analyst David Styblo wrote in a note.
** TRULIA INC, $28.77, -5.83 pct
The online real estate listing service said it intends to offer $150 million convertible senior notes.
** COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP, $119.44, -0.50 pct
The warehouse club operator reported a first-quarter profit and sales that fell short of analysts’ estimates, hurt by a rise in operating expenses.
** VIMICRO INTERNATIONAL CORP, $1.95, +8.33 pct
The China-based company, which provides audio and video signal processing chips for cameras in PCs, said its unit won an order from the Baoding Public Security Bureau worth nearly $41 million, of which Vimicro will receive about $16 million.
** ALLISON TRANSMISSION HOLDINGS INC, $26.05, -4.96 pct
The maker of fully automatic transmissions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles said its largest shareholders, Carlyle Group LP and Onex Corp, sold 12.5 million shares.
** CENTRAL GARDEN & PET CO, $6.63, -9.43 pct
The lawn, garden and pet supplies company on Tuesday reported fourth-quarter results that missed the analysts’ average estimate, hurt by a decline in sales at its pet and garden businesses.
** URBAN OUTFITTERS INC, $37.0325, +3.62 pct
The teen apparel retailer said on Tuesday that comparable sales in its retail segment were up by a “mid-single-digit” percentage so far in the fourth quarter, which includes the holiday season.
** MODUSLINK GLOBAL SOLUTIONS INC, $4.1, +6.77 pct
The provider of logistics and e-business services reported a profit of $617,000 for the first quarter, compared to a loss of $10.7 million a year earlier. (Compiled by Avik Das in Bangalore; Editing by Savio D’Souza)

domain: news


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BTS launches fare payment via Line (Rabbit Line Pay (Through their…
BTS launches fare payment via Line
no longer need to queue up to buy tickets
or top up fares at the counter
as all those tasks can now be done via smartphone.
Rabbit Line Pay
Rabbit Card and skytrain operator BTS
held a soft launchfor fare payment via Rabbit Line Pay with a new BTS icon in the Line app.
Through their smartphones
register for the service
add stored value
check outstanding stored value
review their trip history.
deduct fares from Rabbit Line Pay's e-wallet
or from a credit or debit card tied to Rabbit Line Pay.
register for the full launch of the service in
the first quarter of 2019
including Bangkok Bank's co-branded card.
before fare deduction
when trips are bought via Line
as well as when outstanding stored value is less than the fare.
Losing a Rabbit card
will not mean losing money
As users can remove the lost or stolen card via mobile immediately and protect the remaining value or trips on the phone.
Mr Lee said
more than one Rabbit Card can be bound to Rabbit Line Pay to satisfyfamily users.
managing director of Bangkok Smartcard System Co Ltd
Rabbit Card was launched in 2012 as a BTS ticket.
Today more than 10 million cards have been in use and the card is also accepted as a payment choice at shops.
Line Pay is available in four countries:


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Let's take a look at the regional tea industry's challenges and changing demands
The hospitality industry is taking fitness offerings to the next level; we explore the changing trends
Since Dubai Healthcare City opened in 2002, medical tourism has been high on the agenda of the Dubai government
The report is set to be released in the upcoming Gulfood Manufacturing exhibition in November 2017
Food and Beverage currently accounts for 20% of the retail mix in The Emirates
According to Mergermarket, 2016 Food & Beverage deal value reached an eight-year record
A snapshot of regional hotel performance
What to expect in 2017 from the hospitality industry
Why do hotels often look to open established F&B brands whether international partnerships or franchises, rather than grow their own restaurant concepts?
In the UAE, food delivery is on the rise
The data was supplied by thousands of the company's UAE customers
The Hotelier Middle East Salary SUrvey 2017 is now open for entries, with a deadline of Saturday, May 6
The Fairmont Fujairah Beach Resort's team is convinced they can elevate the hospitality offering in the Northern Emirates
What is going to happen next in the evolution of the industry?


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Crunch Pak Issues Voluntary Recall Of Apple Slices
Crunch Pak of Cashmere, WA, is voluntarily recalling 5,471 cases of Crunch Pak Apple Slices due to a possible health risk from Listeria monocytogenes.
No illnesses have been reported in association with this recall to date. No other Crunch Pak products are affected by this recall. FDA is aware that the company is undertaking this voluntary action.
Listeria monocytogenes is an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Although healthy individuals may suffer only short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headache, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain, and diarrhea, Listeria infection can cause miscarriages and stillbirths among pregnant women.
The company sold the recalled product to retail customers and because, in some cases, the recalled product was shipped to regional distribution centers, Crunch Pak is taking the extra precautionary measure of issuing this recall nationwide to assure that consumers who may have purchased the product are properly alerted.
“We are issuing this voluntary recall to reduce even the slightest risk to public health. There is nothing more important than the health and safety of those who enjoy our products,” said Tony Freytag of Crunch Pak. “We have always been committed to food safety, and we will continue to make food safety a core competency of our company. We realize that food safety is a constant effort, and we are using this opportunity to further evaluate our food safety systems.”
For more information, go to http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm375135.htm?source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery.


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3 Cups of This Reduces Liver Disease 29%!? [Study]
Dear Turapür Today Reader,
No matter what stage of life you’re in, it’s important to take proactive steps to keep your body healthy and fend off disease.
Eating a well-balanced diet, getting plenty of exercise, and taking vitamins and supplements are some of the best ways to keep your health in tip-top shape.
But even if you’re already doing all of those things, sometimes your body can use a little extra ‘help.’
Well, my friend… I have some good news that could help you live long and healthy for years to come!
And all you need is 3 cups of it.
According to a new research study out of the United Kingdom, drinking 3 cups of coffee a day can massively reduce your risk of developing or dying from liver disease!
It turns out that coffee drinkers had a 21% reduced risk of liver disease and a jaw-dropping 49% lower risk of death from chronic liver disease.
And get this, the study also found that DECAF coffee can also reduce the risk of liver disease… which is great news if you have a caffeine sensitivity.
You see, coffee (both regular strength and decaf) is packed with anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic compounds… both of which prevent tissue scaring that is important for your liver health.
For readers of Turapür Today, I’ve talked at length about the numerous health benefits of drinking coffee (even the decaf variety), and this new study proves once again that coffee is one of the best drinks for your health.
Text TURAPUR to 443‑312‑5450
Claim a 20% discount on any TURAPÜR product and other exclusive offers when you sign up for text messages now!
This Food Could Be Growing Deadly Tumors
This Food Could Be Growing Deadly Tumors
Are we literally FEEDING cancer cells by putting this one food on our dinner plates?
This is important. THIS one food could be growing cancer cells.
And here’s where it gets interesting… as soon as we STOP eating it, the opposite happens: cancer cells STARVE to death — and die out by the thousands.
Skeptical? See the evidence here.
The study did note that you should stick to no more than four cups of coffee a day to avoid too much caffeine in your system.
If you’re currently on any kind of medication for your liver, be sure to have a conversation with your doctor about coffee consumption, especially if you plan on increasing your overall coffee intake.
Do you have feedback you want to share? Drop me a line: email@example.com.
Department of Research, Turapür Products
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Microsoft is now more valuable than Google's parent company Alphabet, as firm's market cap soars to $760 BILLION
- Microsoft's market valuation soared past that of Google parent firm Alphabet
- It's now worth $760 billion, making it the third most valuable company in the world in terms of market cap, only trailing rivals Apple and Amazon
- Microsoft has benefited from renewed success in cloud computing and AI
Microsoft has just earned the title of the third most valuable company in the world.
The software giant saw its market cap skyrocket to just over $760 billion on Wednesday, making it that much closer to being the world's most valuable company -- a title held by Apple and closely followed by Amazon.
But that doesn't mean Microsoft has lost out on any bragging rights, however, as its new market capitalization means that it has surged ahead of Google parent company Alphabet, in terms of valuation.
Scroll down for video
Microsoft is now worth close to $20 billion more than Alphabet, which has a market cap of roughly $744 billion. It's the first time that such occurrence has happened in three years
Microsoft is now worth close to $20 billion more than Alphabet, which has a market cap of roughly $744 billion.
That's the first time Microsoft has surpassed Alphabet in valuation in the last three years.
Microsoft and Alphabet have been swapping spots with each other over the last several years, but Microsoft has been helped by renewed focus on cloud computing and artificial intelligence.
In particular, under Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella's four-year leadership, the firm has shifted its focus away from its aging software and hardware business and towards newer, burgeoning technologies.
Just last week, Microsoft acquired Semantic Machines to make its Cortana AI assistant even smarter.
Microsoft's stock price has more than doubled since Nadella took over, according to Fast Company.
Under Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella's four-year leadership, the firm has shifted its focus away from its aging software and hardware business and towards newer, burgeoning technologies
Microsoft saw its market cap skyrocket to just over $760 billion on Wednesday, making it that much closer to being the world's most valuable a company
That success has made several Wall Street analysts believe that Microsoft could soon reach a $1 trillion market capitalization.
Microsoft, Apple, Amazon and Alphabet have been locked in a race to become the first company to cross the $1 trillion threshold.
As many analysts have pointed out, Microsoft is helped by its diverse revenue pipeline, which spans products like LinkedIn and Office, cloud services and personal computing and gaming.
By comparison, rivals like Apple earn most of its revenue from a mainstay product such as the iPhone, while Alphabet earns most of its profits from advertising.
Still, Apple remains far ahead of its competitors in terms of market capitalization, with a valuation that stands at just over $920 billion.
Apple's stock has been helped in recent months by glowing comments from legendary investor Warren Buffett and better-than-expected quarterly earnings.
WHAT IS MICROSOFT'S CORTANA?
Cortana is Microsoft's voice assistant software, which was initially released in 2014.
It can provide answers to some questions and complete basic tasks, and it learns over time to become more useful every day.
There are two ways to use Cortana: you can use voice commands, or you can type out your commands in the Start Menu.
If you choose the former, you may want to enable the 'Hey Cortana' feature. With this on, you can say 'Hey Cortana' out loud to trigger voice commands without pressing a button.
Here's how: Search for 'Cortana settings' in your Start Menu. Enable the toggle under 'Hey Cortana.'
Under 'Respond best', you can choose 'to me' to tailor Cortana to your voice. You'll need to perform a couple quick exercises to teach Cortana to recognize your voice.
Otherwise, Cortana will work for anyone.
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Nov 25, 2021 - 03:58 pm
Germany’s new government aims for more sustainable transport
The newly-elected German federal coalition government has presented its coalition agreement. This is titled “Mehr Fortschritt Wagen” and can be translated to something like “dare to innovate” or “dare to make progress.” This, of course, has a number of ramifications for the transport industry.
Nov 18, 2020 - 12:46 pm
Germany extends stimulus for EVs until 2025
In Germany, a panel of top politicians and business leaders has decided on further incentives for electric mobility. As expected, these include the extension of the innovation premium until 2025, but also subsidies and requirements for the expansion of charging infrastructure.
Jul 8, 2020 - 01:16 pm
German Innovation Premium comes into force
In Germany, the Innovation Premium that spells out the doubling of the federal share of the Environmental Bonus for electric vehicles has come into force. The amended funding guidelines for the Environmental Bonus were published in the Federal Gazette, thus making it official.
Jun 4, 2020 - 02:12 pm
Germany doubles EV subsidies, no more diesel support
In an economic stimulus package following the Corona crisis, the German government has included several measures to promote electric mobility. The most powerful one is that the state is doubling its share of the environmental bonus in the form of a new “innovation premium”.
Feb 18, 2020 - 05:43 pm
Increased EV subsidies go into effect in Germany
The increased environmental bonus has now come into force with its publication in the German Federal Gazette for official announcements. Meanwhile, the ministry responsible for the allocation of the bonus – the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA) – has updated its website.
Feb 11, 2020 - 05:27 pm
EV subsidy increase in Germany green lit by EU
Brussels has given the green light for an increase in the EV subsidy scheme, the Environmental Bonus in Germany. According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, the European Commission today announced that it has no objections to greater financial support for electric vehicles in Germany.
Nov 5, 2019 - 02:49 pm
Germany to increase electric car sales with subsidies
At the “car summit” held at the Chancellery in Berlin, the German federal government and industry representatives have agreed on measures to boost electric cars sales. Purchase premiums and the number of charging stations will increase, while some questions remain unanswered.
Feb 13, 2019 - 02:05 pm
Germany considers extending EV subsidies
It is looking quite likely that Germany will extend subsidies for electric cars and plug-in hybrids. The German government is reportedly considering extending the available period beyond June 2019.
Jul 17, 2018 - 07:50 pm
Germany: Tesla buyers must pay back plug-in grant
Close to a thousand buyers of the Tesla Model S have been asked by German authority BAFA to pay back the plug-in grant (Umweltbonus) at once. This follows an alleged subsidy fraud that has since been cleared, but too late for most.
Apr 4, 2018 - 02:39 pm
Sales record: Germans bought 3,792 electric cars in March
The German KBA has issued the latest sales date for electric and hybrid cars and March has broken the record in every respect. 3,792 electric cars were sold in Germany in that month alone, more than in any other month and 73.1% more than in February.
Mar 27, 2018 - 04:38 pm
Germany: Model S included on list for EV subsidies again
After Tesla had have to watch the German authority BAFA exclude the Model S from the list of eligible EVs for the country’s plug-in grant (Umweltbonus), the Model S is now listed again, as long as it comes with the most basic trim level for real this time.


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Ubisoft has just announced the date and time of their E3 press conference.
The conference will be held on June 12th at 1 PM PT / 9PM BST. The news was posted online via the official Twitter feed for the company. The Twitter post ends by stating “stay tuned for the latest”. This most likely means that Ubisoft will be revealing a few things ahead of the press conference next month.
However, the earning report for the company already reveals quite a few things. It confirms that the new Assassin’s Creed will be releasing before March 2018. It also reveals that a new Far Cry game and a new game for The Crew is also coming.
Details on these games are currently very limited but Ubisoft will most likely be revealing them at E3 later this year.
We will be providing you with all the latest news and updates from E3 later this year in June.


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CINCINNATI - Stores like Macy's and Toys R Us are doing everything they can to get last minute shoppers to come through their doors.
Matt Burge came to the Toys R Us in Kenwood from South Lebanon just to take advantage of the early shopping hours being offered.
"If they were open 2-5 in the afternoon, I wouldn't have come. So the fact that they're open in the off hours makes life a lot easier on me," said Burge.
Toys R Us is staying open for 88 hours and won't shut its doors until 10 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
Macy's is also doing a marathon weekend. It opened its doors Friday at 7 a.m. and will not close until midnight on Sunday.
Stephanie Kennedy from Cheviot walked through the Kenwood Towne Centre Macy's at 5:30 a.m. Saturday to take care of some last minute gift needs.
"I'm very excited. It's very peaceful to be able to come in and get whatever you need and know that you don't have a bunch of people pushing you out of the way to get their last minute shopping done as well," said Kennedy.
One thing you shouldn't expect during these marathon sales, at least not at 5:30 in the morning, is the crazy Black Friday style rushes we've seen in years past.
Julia Williams from Westwood knows what it's like to fight your way through not only a crowd, but a busy parking lot.
"It was just madness! So I wanted to make sure, when I found out they were going to be open 24 hours, that I got in here early today," said Kennedy.
Store managers we spoke with say the marathon weekends are here to stay. So for next year, even if you are a last minute shopper, you should be able to search for gifts in peace, even if you have to wake up in the middle of the night to do so.


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Sydney Beer Week to return
Sydney Beer Week is set to return next year with new owners announcing plans to resurrect the event after a six-year hiatus with a focus on hospitality venues.
Peter Anstey, General Manager of Sydney’s Hotel Sweeneys, and Josh Quantrill, National Channel Manager at 4 Pines, have acquired the festival from former owner Dave Phillips, who last ran the event in 2018 before cancelling the event in 2019 citing a lack of sponsorship.
In a statement announcing the event, Anstey said it was time for the event’s return.
“With Melbourne having Good Beer Week, it struck me that Sydney needed to reawaken,” he said.
“We needed to celebrate our venues, our customers, and our amazing breweries.
“Australia now boasts excellent breweries and beers, and we should be out there supporting our industry and the people who dedicate their lives to providing us with some of the best beer and venues that give us some of the best times of our lives.”
Few details are yet available for the event, to be held on as yet unspecified dates in October next year. However, Peter Anstey says it will be about providing an experience to encourage people to get out to hospitality venues.
“It’s about the experience, it’s about coming out,” he said. “It’s about not necessarily drinking something that’s highly hopped, it’s about options.”
Quantrill said that he felt the market had lost something with the absence of events like this.
“When I entered the market, when I first started drinking beer, there was a beer event on every week,” he said.
“There was a brewer somewhere, there was a pub somewhere, doing something which allowed you a little bit less of a buy-in to be able to go along and learn and experience just by being there.”
He said the beer events would give consumers, especially younger drinkers, a ‘permission point’ to enter the beer market.
Anstey said with just the two partners running it, the event would be ‘smaller and more concise’.
“It’s just me and Josh. It’s not a big team,” he said.
“But we’re lucky we’ve got an amazing industry around us to support us and help us.
“It’s gonna be a lot more of a spread out event across the 10 days to ensure there’s not massive saturation points in some parts, and then nothing on in others.
“Our intent is to bring trade into town, so they have the opportunity to mingle and chat because at the GABS dinner at the Convention Centre it was clear that trade wants to get together, they want to talk, they want to chat, they don’t want to sit down dinner, they just want to get together. ”
“We feel like the industry is definitely ready to start doing something in Sydney, and we have some great people in our industry.”
He observed that breweries such as Mountain Culture didn’t even exist when the event was last staged.
“So we’ve got some great new entrants into the industry.”
Anstey said the event would focus on Sydney venues, with breweries working with pubs for events.
“The events will need to be held in hospitality venues,” he said.
“We’re very clear that we all know that the breweries are creating great beer and have got great spaces. But the real issue is getting it in the hands of the consumer.
“So the intent is that breweries would approach venues to try and get consumers back in the pubs.”
With a stated focus on hospitality venues, Brews News asked whether that meant brewers had to align with pubs.
Quantrill said the intent was to bring “brewers and hospitality professionals together to create an incredible experience.”
“How that experience comes across, the best way for that to happen, is one we’re totally open to.
“But the larger plan is to bring people to create the best experiences; it’s their livelihood, it’s their skill set, it’s everything they do, which is hospitality and then to be supported by their fantastic suppliers of liquid, which is where breweries come in.”
He said that the event was looking to include restaurants and cocktail bars as well as pubs.
“Anyone that is keen to bring a really good experience to the consumer and getting more people to drink more great beer.”
He said tap rooms would be eligible if the event proposed “was in line with the ethos of the event and what it was trying to bring to Sydney”.
“There’s also some fantastic hospitality professionals within taprooms and if there’s a great experience that they’re bringing, together with, with a great supplier as well, then that’s fantastic.”
Following the announcement of the news Brews News spoke to several Sydney-based brewers to ascertain their thoughts on the revitalised event. None wished to be quoted, though all were broadly supportive of the move, if cautious based on previous experiences.
A common observation was that Sydney consumers are very different to Melbourne, who drive that city’s Good Beer Week attendances.
“I don’t know why that is, ” one brewer observed. “But they are.”
“Last time brewers often outnumbered consumers at events.”
“People don’t turn up for tap takeovers anymore, and ‘meet the brewer’ doesn’t really mean anything anymore in my experience,” another brewer said.
“My biggest question is what will be different about this event that will get people out?”
Josh Quantrill said that was the kind of feedback that he wanted to hear from previous participants to develop the plan for next year’s event.
Sydney Beer Week was first run in 2011. The new owners succeed Dave’s Brewer Tours founder, Dave Phillips, who in turn acquired the rights to the festival from the former owners in 2016, relaunching the event in 2017.
The move to reinvigorate Sydney Beer Week comes against a backdrop of similar events globally facing declining attendance and cancellations amidst questions about their relevance in a more mature beer market.
This trend predates COVID, with Brews News hosting a panel discussion during the 2018 Sydney Beer Week posing the question of whether beer weeks have had their day, and examining what consumers and brewers want from such events.


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1. -- Stock Futures Turn Mixed as Impeachment Vote Looms
U.S. stock futures turned Wednesday as Wall Street looked to extend its winning streak to a sixth day even as House Democrats prepared to vote on two articles of impeachment against Donald Trump.
The vote - which ultimately is unlikely to remove the president from office (the Senate said it will take up the vote in the new year and the vote in that body needs a supermajority to convict Trump) - will, however, underscore the ongoing political divisions in Washington heading into next year's elections.
Contracts linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1 points, futures for the S&P 500 slipped 0.40 points and Nasdaq futures were down 0.25 points.
The three major stock market indexes closed at record highs Tuesday as Wall Street booked its fifth straight day of gains. Stronger-than-expected housing data for November continue to support the bullish case for U.S. stocks,
The Dow closed up 31 points, or 0.11%, to 28,267.16, the S&P 500 rose 0.03% to 3,192.52, and the Nasdaq advanced 0.1% to 8,823,36.
2. -- Micron Technology, General Mills Report Earnings
General Mills (GIS) - Get General Mills Inc. Report posted stronger-than-expected second-quarter earnings and re-affirmed its full-year profit guidance, as pet food sales supported top-line growth for the consumer brands giant.
The economic calendar in the U.S. Wednesday includes Oil Inventories for the week ended Dec. 13 at 10:30 a.m. ET.
3. -- Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot to Merge in Deal That Creates Fourth-Largest Carmaker
"The merged entity will maneuver with speed and efficiency in an automotive industry undergoing rapid and fundamental changes," the automakers said Wednesday.
The companies signed a binding agreement that calls for a 50-50 merger of their businesses. PSA CEO Carlos Tavares will lead the new company, while Fiat Chrysler Chairman John Elkann will serve as chairman of the new company, which wasn't named.
PSA will have one extra seat on the new company's board.
The deal is expected to close in 12 to 15 months.
The merged company will have revenue of nearly €170 billion and produce about 8.7 million cars a year.
Annual cost savings are forecast at €3.7 billion.
4. -- FedEx Tumbles as Earnings Drop 39%, Outlook Is Slashed
FedEx (FDX) - Get FedEx Corporation Report tumbled 7.69% to $150.67 in premarket trading Wednesday after the package-delivery giant said earnings in its fiscal second-quarter fell 39% on a revenue decrease of 2.8%.
FedEx earned $2.13 a share in the period, down from $3.51 in the year-earlier quarter. Adjusted earnings were $2.51 a share. Revenue slipped to $17.32 billion from $17.82 billion.
Analysts were expecting adjusted profit of $2.78 a share on revenue of $17.6 billion.
"Operating results declined due to weak global economic conditions, increased FedEx Ground costs from expanded service offerings, the loss of business from a large customer, a continuing mix shift to lower-yielding services and a more competitive pricing environment," the company said in a statement.
"In addition, the later timing of the Thanksgiving holiday resulted in the shifting of Cyber Week into December," FedEx said.
FedEx said fiscal 2020 earnings should range from $10.25 to $11.50 a share excluding an accounting adjustment and excluding TNT Express integration expenses and aircraft impairment charges. That is down from prior guidance of $11 to $13 a share.
Analysts were looking for earnings of $12.09 a share.
5. -- Tesla Could Cut Prices of China-Built Cars in 2020
Tesla (TSLA) - Get Tesla Inc. Report is considering cutting the price of its China-built Model 3 sedans by 20% or more in 2020, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the electric vehicle company's plans.
The move is intended to attract more buyers to the world’s biggest electric-vehicle market as growth slows, Bloomberg noted.
Tesla aims to bring down costs by using more local components, allowing it to import fewer parts and avoid tariffs, the people told Bloomberg.


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Making calls with your Windows 10 PC connected to an Android smartphone is now possible for everyone, thanks to the latest update of Your Phone app. This functionality has been under test for some months now in the Insider channel, but a little while ago their official Twitter account indicated it starts to be available on the stable channel.
However, we must point out that the distribution is gradual. And maybe for the moment, it is limited to some markets. Often Microsoft starts from the United States, its homeland, and then expands to Europe and other continents.
“Thank you #WindowsInsiders for your feedback over the last couple of months. Today, we’re pleased to announce the general availability of the #YourPhone app Calls feature, which allows you to receive and make phone calls on your PC: https://aka.ms/YourPhone” tweeted Windows Insider.
Thank you #WindowsInsiders for your feedback over the last couple of months. Today, we're pleased to announce the general availability of the #YourPhone app Calls feature, which allows you to receive and make phone calls on your PC: https://t.co/m47kLcXgbS pic.twitter.com/4GuIOXjR71
— Windows Insider (@windowsinsider) December 11, 2019
Gizchina News of the week
Your Phone must be installed on Windows 10 PCs if it is not already present. While on Android the official companion app must be downloaded from the Play Store. You can find the links below. Once the two devices communicate, different tabs appear. Such as SMS, recent photos and, in fact, calls. From here it is possible to call any number in the phonebook. If a phone call arrives on the smartphone, it is also possible to answer from a PC.
A ransomware is hidden in this windows 10 fake update
It is worth to mention that as Microsoft has just released the new update of Windows 10, a new phishing campaign takes the opportunity to spread in the form of an email, prompting users of Windows 10 to install a critical update. Researchers at Trustwave have released details of this new threat. It attempts to trick users into hijacking their PCs and demanding a ransom.
The e-mail, which is currently in English and seems to come from Microsoft, has the subject ” Install Latest Microsoft Windows Update now!” or “Critical Microsoft Windows Update!” And prompt the reader to install the included update as an attachment. In reality, it is a program that downloads a ransomware called Cyborg.


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Workdays can start hours earlier than daybreak in Guaymas, Mexico, the place a small cohort of locals launch modest fiberglass-and-wood boats from the rocky shore into waters that may gleam azure at dawn. From their pangas, crafts about 20 toes lengthy with little greater than three bench seats and an outboard motor, the 38 members of the Sociedad Cooperativa de Producción Pesquera 29 de Agosto SCL forged baited hooks on longlines and pull in yellowtail, grouper, or snapper by hand. On most outings, every boat can catch as a lot as 220 kilos earlier than it returns to dock within the afternoon.
Some 75 years in the past, co-op president Andrés Grajeda Coronado’s great-grandfather, Celso Grajeda, dealt with his catch the identical manner. “He used the identical as we do: a line and a hook,” says Coronado. A statue of Celso, one in every of Guaymas’ first fishermen, overlooks the city. At this time, the town is the best seafood-producing neighborhood of the handfuls that dot the Gulf of California, the strip of water separating the Baja peninsula from mainland Mexico, the place hundreds of laborers ship fish from the ocean to cities.
In Celso’s day, he was one in every of just a few males promoting catches on to customers on the docks, however immediately, a era of artisanal staff typically discover themselves tangled on the backside of an unlimited international Source chain. Ninety p.c of the world’s 35 million fishermen function on a small scale—with thousands and thousands in distant, rural areas—but they produce greater than half of the worldwide catch and the same share of what hits their international locations’ export markets. Many dwell hand to mouth, depending on a string of middlemen to maintain 91 million tons of perishable wild-caught fish chilly, processed, and distributed to eating places, lodges, and supermarkets.
On many distant docks, a single purchaser units the worth, or a couple of collude to maintain fishermen from demanding increased charges. And all of the shuffling between events from there onward supplies ample alternative for misconduct. Catches which are unlawful, unreported, or unregulated (identified within the commerce as IUU) account for one in every of each 5 fish reeled in, injecting $23.5 billion value of successfully stolen seafood into the market, based on International Fishing Watch, a world nonprofit that makes use of satellites, infrared, and radar imagery to detect IUU. Such losses jeopardize meals safety for over three billion folks and the livelihoods of small-scale fishermen.
To keep up incomes, they do no matter they will to catch extra. In Guaymas, a majority use gill nets, which entice swimmers by the gills in webbing—to devastating consequence. A 2016 evaluation of 121 Gulf of California fisheries shares by researchers at a number of entities, together with the Nationwide Middle for Ecological Evaluation and Synthesis, estimates that 69 p.c have collapsed and one other 11 p.c are overexploited. Such indiscriminate strategies additionally result in losses of different species, notably the critically endangered vaquita, the world’s smallest porpoise. There could also be not more than 10 of them left.
That’s in regular occasions. When COVID-19 shut down a lot of the world in March 2020, it unleashed an financial tsunami on the $150 billion international seafood market. The shuttering of eating places, the place almost 70 p.c of catches ended up earlier than the pandemic, dried up demand for high-end chef favorites resembling lobster, abalone, and squid—in addition to on a regular basis fare like Guaymas’ yellowtail and grouper.
The worldwide motion of recent fish—probably the most traded meals commodity on the earth—has been sputtering ever since. The coronavirus is an “unparalleled” disruption, says Paul Doremus, deputy assistant administrator for operations at Nationwide Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries, the US company tasked with monitoring marine sources. “It’s so complete in scale and scope and so lengthy in period that it’ll have profound results on seafood Source chains globally, in methods we don’t solely perceive but.” The interruption has undoubtedly difficult efforts to satisfy the United Nations’ Sustainable Growth Purpose to finish overfishing, unlawful catches, and damaging practices by the top of 2020.
Amid the chaos, although, many see a chance to reshape seafood gross sales in ways in which bolster adoption of extra sustainable strategies and create a extra equitable future for fishermen like these in Coronado’s co-op. That begins with serving to the little guys profit from supplying one of the best of their items to a rising market of dwelling cooks and eco-conscious retailers. The key weapon is transparency: the power for the top client, and trade screens, to confirm the how, the place, and by whom of every snapper, salmon, or shrimp.
[Related: Your supermarket salmon is probably stealing somebody’s food]
Over the previous few years, nonprofits, authorities companies, and trade collectives have begun regular growth of tasks to rebuild depleted fish shares, typically by enlisting locals in managing catches. As well as, efforts are underway to check and undertake traceability applied sciences resembling RFID chips, QR tags, and blockchain coding to hold details about a selected fish from hook to prepare dinner.
The truth that Coronado’s cooperative had at all times caught by moral means attracted SmartFish, a La Paz, Mexico, firm targeted on championing sustainable fishing within the area. The group’s nonprofit arm helps staff transition to eco-friendly practices, whereas its for-profit enterprise sells their items on to high-end eating places and the general public.
When requested what his ancestor would consider a QR code slapped on a frozen hunk of yellowtail or snapper certain for California, Coronado’s severe demeanor instantly erupts right into a chuckle. “Are you loopy?” he quips, mimicking Celso’s imagined response. In his mid-50s with jet-black hair, Coronado is youthful than most of his graying co-op members. With only a few of their youngsters all for carrying on the household enterprise, he is aware of that if one thing doesn’t change quickly, there shall be nothing however gill nets—and dangerously dwindling inventory—left.
Earlier than the co-op joined SmartFish in 2019, Coronado handled no less than two middlemen—one in Tijuana and one in California—who purchased the group’s catch. He knew the products would shuffle about lots earlier than reaching a shelf or plate, however a fisherman’s most important concern is just shifting inventory off the dock.
The Byzantine international distribution of seafood resembles a weird sport of chilly potato: Unable to carry their catches on ice indefinitely, fishermen are beholden to 3rd events who can look forward to ultimate market situations to unload stock. Whereas distributors can stockpile frozen provides of mahi-mahi for months and even years, of us like Coronado should typically settle for low costs merely to unload their perishables. Some 27 p.c of fish will get misplaced, discarded, or wasted earlier than it may well attain the patron, based on the Meals and Agriculture Group of the United Nations. In Mexico, some “fishers catch high-quality wild seafood, however with poor dealing with, it turns into sunbaked rotten mash,” says Cecilia Blasco, govt director of SmartFish, which companions with 5 cooperatives across the Baja peninsula.
Blasco estimates that in a traditional Source chain, as much as 12 totally different events may contact a yellowtail on its technique to the patron from Guaymas. Usually, fishermen offload their catch to an area entrepreneur, who takes it to the closest city and sells it to a small aggregator; from there, consumers from bigger markets in Mexico Metropolis or Guadalajara buy high-value species—all earlier than the products attain a distributor or exporter. Patrons at each stage command a minimize, and people doing the precise fishing in western Mexico often obtain solely 18–20 p.c of the ultimate value.
Shady practices on bigger vessels additional drawback the little guys. Some of the widespread schemes: Refrigerated cargo vessels, known as “reefers,” keep in worldwide waters, which permits them to bypass laws if, say, they combination authorized and unlawful fare from a number of smaller crafts. (The apply is most prevalent off the coasts of Russia and West Africa and within the South Indian Ocean and the equatorial Pacific Ocean.) In impact, they’re laundering the catch.
As a result of all fish appears to be like roughly the identical as soon as it reaches the shelf, it’s straightforward to cover ill-gotten items. Even a fillet marked “wild caught” on the grocer may not be what it appears. A 2019 report from nonprofit conservation group Oceana DNA examined greater than 400 samples from 250 shops throughout the US and located that 20 p.c of labels misidentified issues like species and origin. Worse but, a 2015 investigation by the Related Press revealed that some fish on Walmart and Kroger cabinets had been caught by compelled labor.
COVID-19 solely exacerbated the possibility of unsavory exercise. Usually, governments require impartial observers to journey on vessels and confirm crew are complying with laws that stipulate the quantity, measurement, intercourse, and species of the seafood. To keep away from transmission of the virus on cramped crafts, nonetheless, many lifted the mandate. With out the standard eyes and ears on the water, it may be even simpler for illicit catches to happen, says International Fishing Watch CEO Tony Lengthy. It’s unclear when observers will resume their duties.
Amid all this, the stress to undertake traceability applied sciences is rising. Giant, risk-averse retailers like Walmart and Kroger have, within the years for the reason that compelled labor revelations, begun adopting more and more stringent sustainability necessities. “Some distributors who bought to eating places at the moment are attempting to pivot to retail,” says Teresa Ish, senior program officer of the Walton Household Basis’s setting initiative. The shift creates an amazing alternative for change. And it solely will increase the attraction of tasks like SmartFish, that are meant not solely to shorten the Source chain but additionally to exhibit that customers present extra curiosity in fish that comes with a narrative hooked up.
For his or her half, dwelling cooks have bolstered retail demand in the course of the pandemic. Novice cooks have traditionally averted shopping for recent fish as a result of they don’t know the best way to put together it, says Martin Exel, managing director of Seafood Enterprise for Ocean Stewardship, a collective of 10 of the world’s prime seafood corporations in addition to lecturers. “It’s had a stigma,” he explains.
[Related: Stone Age farming practices are making a comeback in the age of climate change]
With time on their arms, nonetheless, customers are getting extra adventurous with their home-dining choices. In Maine, for instance, a gaggle of fishermen who’ve adopted sushi-grade dealing with strategies have been capable of safe high-enough costs to promote pollock and monkfish domestically as a substitute of exporting it. Niceland Seafoods, an organization that makes a speciality of Icelandic imports, bought out of a cargo of wolffish (it’s type of like catfish) in a Denver grocery store in 4 days. And frozen gross sales surged greater than 50 p.c across the starting of COVID lockdown, based on trade publication Seafood Source.
It’s too quickly to inform if armchair gourmands can soak up a big quantity of the Source that used to go to eating places. Altering Tastes, a culinary consultancy, predicts that two-thirds of sit-down, full-service eateries won’t reopen after the pandemic. However with each supermarkets and customers exhibiting a brand new urge for food for fish—and for perception into the provenance of what they’re shopping for—Coronado and his group are effectively positioned to satisfy demand, and to take action at premium costs.
Aboard his blue-and-white panga, Guaymas co-op member José Francisco Mendizábal follows a brand new routine after he lands a grouper or yellowtail. He plunges a knife into the highest of its cranium, bleeds it, then locations it in an ice-water bathtub—steps that assist protect taste and texture. On shore, he scrubs down his vessel whereas SmartFish processors fillet and freeze the catch. By comparability, a gill-net fisherman outdoors the co-op would dump seafood within the backside of a ship, leaving it to decay within the solar till it reached shore. Mendizábal’s strategies could also be time consuming and depart him with much less yield, he says, however it’s value it: Working with SmartFish will web the co-op 50 p.c of the ultimate value, greater than double what they made earlier than. The system, says Coronado, rewards them for his or her abilities.
When COVID-19 first hit, demand for recent fish from Guaymas plummeted, and the one industrial link left was SmartFish. The group packages the co-op’s items with a QR label pointing to particulars about the place it was caught, by whom, and the way. A Mexico Metropolis retailer sells the frozen, vacuum-sealed product and manages exports to the US, its yellowtail certain for San Francisco and Portland, Oregon. Gross sales jumped by 30 p.c between March and Could 2020.
SmartFish’s work in Guaymas is just not an remoted instance. Different communities have discovered a lifeline in the course of the pandemic by utilizing know-how to exchange disrupted Source chains. In South Africa, a smartphone app known as Abalobi, developed by the College of Cape City, has helped fishermen promote lobster on to eating places which have remained open. Along with securing increased costs, additionally they document their catches—and due to this fact present information that may assist enhance fisheries administration. Way forward for Fish, a nonprofit that helps small-scale sea harvesters, jumped in to assist Chileans construct on-line markets to promote their hake, and it’ll quickly check the Abalobi app there as effectively.
As their attain grows, applied sciences that shine mild on the sources of seafood are positive to be good for each backside strains and fisheries. Think about, for instance, the Tuna 2020 Traceability Declaration—signed in 2017 by the largest retailers, processors, entrepreneurs, merchants, and harvesters—specifying that, to curb overfishing, corporations should make all merchandise totally traceable to the vessel and date on which they have been caught and adjust to government-mandated reporting. Because the effort started, the marketplace for responsibly sourced tuna has doubled, and the proportion of sustainable tuna shares has rebounded from a 2014 low of 14 p.c to 28 p.c.
“Traceability is crucial to our potential to handle for resilience,” says Mark Zimring, director of the Giant Scale Fisheries Program on the Nature Conservancy, which helps handle a gaggle of ocean-roaming species that transcend nationwide jurisdictions. “Two-thirds of world fisheries are overfished,” he says.
Rising applied sciences provide alternatives for retailers in addition to oversight our bodies to watch what’s occurring. Conservationists are calling for onboard cameras geared up with synthetic intelligence that may distinguish the load and size of fish, as a substitute for absent human screens. The European Union mandates using each digital reporting and satellite tv for pc monitoring on vessels longer than 12 meters (39.four toes) so authorities regulators can higher keep watch over populations.
Within the Gulf of Mexico, Del Pacifico, a wholesaler of shrimp licensed as truthful commerce, equips its boats with a solar-powered tracker from an organization known as Pelagic Knowledge Methods. Every machine screens the craft’s actions through satellite tv for pc; potential prospects can then enter lots ID quantity to verify, as an illustration, shrimpers weren’t in waters the place endangered porpoises reside. Del Pacifico works with 1,500 shops, primarily in the US—and retail has grown sufficient in the course of the pandemic to cowl the 25 p.c of inventory it could usually promote to eating places. “Traceability helped us get extra purchasers, and extra high-end purchasers,” says founder and CEO Sergio Castro.
A rising variety of efforts are becoming a member of the ranks of Del Pacifico in assuring customers that fish are correctly dealt with as soon as they depart the water. Niceland Seafoods weaves sensor-equipped RFID tags into packaging to trace temperatures. In New Zealand, the World Wildlife Fund has developed a blockchain-based system to embed data on the motion of wild-caught tuna on tags and link the information to a QR code.
Nonetheless, adoption could be gradual. Some fishermen could also be reluctant to embrace public monitoring of their vessels out of worry it’d tip opponents to carefully guarded data, like, say, their favourite hotspots. But others discover worthwhile upsides. In Peru, mahi-mahi and squid harvesters are utilizing a World Wildlife Fund–backed smartphone app to create historic data of their efficiency, which can enable them to assert their fair proportion of the catch ought to the federal government impose quotas—as occurred with anchovies, one of many greatest pure shares on the earth.
Finally, digital oversight may rein in what is basically a Wild West offshore. A 2019 examine within the journal Fish and Fisheries surveyed 100 digital monitoring trials and 12 totally carried out applications, resembling these within the EU, and located that the units have been cost-effective, provided higher protection of a fleet than human observers, and generated extra information on the quantity and particular location of fishing exercise.
Serving to the folks on the boats undertake clear, sustainable strategies yields a fruitful synergy: extra swimmers within the ocean, more money in locals’ pockets, and higher seafood on eating tables. Coronado, for one, takes pleasure in sustaining the heritage practices his co-op has used for many years, and sees COVID-19 as a window of alternative to increase traceability—and with it, their enterprise. With out these sorts of modifications, the fourth-generation fisherman worries there received’t be a fifth to hold on the custom. “Now we have to show to those who working the way in which we do, it’s attainable to help a household,” he says. “That it’s attainable to dwell.”
This story seems within the Winter 2020, Transformation problem of Standard Science.


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I just got back from a trip to Europe, where one of the things you don’t see on the labels of candy bars and sodas is High Fructose Corn Syrup. I don’t think the sweetener’s technically banned there, but it’s very rare. So it’s no surprise that folks like the Corn Refiners Association, a trade group lobbying for HFCS, are waging a big battle to maintain its market position here in the US. We’ve written about their legal squabbles before.
And I’ve noticed that over the past few years, they’ve enlisted Adweek in helping them make their case. I get emails like this one, pushing a “webinar” to disseminate new research:
What does this say about Adweek that they’re taking sides in this issue? Even if they’re simply attaching the magazine’s name to it, is this another case of business journalism becoming biased? Or is this the future of legitimizing “branded content”? Would you accept the information you’d hear at this webinar–which indicates that consumers don’t distinguish between sweeteners very much–at face value because a magazine is attached to it?


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Sensor technology company Zettlex has celebrated the opening of a new production line at its plant in Cambridge.
General manager at Zettlex, Mark Howard, was joined by David Coates and Myrddin Jones from the UK’s Technology Strategy Board for the official opening alongside production staff.
Zettlex, which designs and manufactures a range of sensor technologies used in the industrial, defence, aerospace and medical sectors, is recruiting extra production and engineering staff to cope with rising global export orders. The company already exports to most countries in Europe, as well as the US, Canada, Australia and South Africa.
Howard commented, “Zettlex proves that if you’ve got a good product you can make it in the UK, and then export it all over the world. We have been delighted with the support we’ve received from the Technology Strategy Board, which does so much to support research and development in the UK – opening the way for companies to become world leaders. We are proud to fly the flag for Britain as an example of a company that is growing despite very challenging economic circumstances.”
Coates added, “We’re delighted that our initial support for Zettlex has led to real growth – both in economic and also employment terms. As an organisation driving innovation in the UK, we know that small companies need support at the right time to flourish. Zettlex is a great example of sustainable growth and development.”


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Karma Automotive LLC, the Costa Mesa-based manufacturer of luxury electric hybrid plug-in vehicles, hired Dennis Dougherty as president and chief operations officer, a new position.
Dougherty most recently served as president of the China-based division of Remy International Inc., which specializes in hybrid electric motors, starters and alternators. He also worked for General Motors as plant manager and for Saturn as vice president of manufacturing.
Karma, once known as Fisker Automotive and Technology Group LLC, said it will unveil its first car, the Revero, late this summer. The luxury electric sedan is produced at its new 556,000-square-foot facility in Moreno Valley.
"Dennis brings with him extensive operations experience in the U.S., China and Mexico which will be invaluable as we launch the Revero and expand our global footprint," Chief Executive Tom Corcoran said in a statement.
Wanxiang Group Corp., one of the largest auto parts makers in China, acquired Fisker in a 2014 bankruptcy court auction for $149.2 million in cash. It also owns Fisker’s former lithium ion battery maker, A123 Systems Inc., which it got in 2013 for about $256.6 million.


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A California lawsuit filed by a non-profit group claims that e-cigarettes cause cancer, and that manufacturers failed to warn customers of two cancer-causing chemicals as well as the potential health effects nicotine use.
RJ Reynolds (Vuse), Fontem/Imperial Tobacco (Blu) and NJOY have been named in the suit.
The Center for Environmental Health said that 90% of e-cigarettes, e-liquids, and other vaping products purchased from major retailers such as RiteAid and 7-Eleven were found to contain formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, or both; two chemicals known to cause cancer that have also been linked to genetic damages, birth defects, and reduced fertility.
Under California’s Prop 65 consumer protection law companies must warn consumers when products may expose users to chemicals that can cause cancer or birth defects.
Along with this most recent suit, the nonprofit has also launched legal actions against more than 60 companies for failing to warn consumers about exposure to e-cigarettes, nicotine, or other cancer causing chemicals.
As a San Francisco product liability attorney, what shocks me is that the manufacturers, distributors and retailers of dangerous products seem to think that they have to warn about the poisons in regular cigarettes, but that they don’t have to warn about the same poisons in e-cigs. If there is a scientific reason why e-cigarettes are less dangerous than regular smoking cigarettes, I would like to know. To me, if you sell poison, you should be just as liable for any harm you cause, no matter how you package that poison.


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QuickTime at 'core' of cell phone content
At the CTIA Wireless IT & Entertainment 2004 show today, Frank Cassanova, Apple's director of QuickTime marketing, said his company isn't worried about getting QuickTime player on mobile phones--and is instead focusing on behind the scenes QuickTime servers
that phone carriers are using. "While Apple competitors Microsoft and Real prefer to attack the burgeoning market for cell phone entertainment by having handset makers embed their media players directly into phones, Apple doesn't see the need," reports CNET News.com
. "Major cell phone carriers Verizon Wireless, Sprint, and Japan's NTT DoCoMo and KDDI already use QuickTime on their servers that manage media for photo e-mailing and other new services. In a way, Apple's found its way into the core of cell phone carrier without having to build a single handset, primarily by selling servers to manage media on a cell phone operator's network."
The above news item was originally posted on MacMinute.com. This and other MacMinute content
stand dedicated to the mory of Stan Flack, founder of both MacMinute and MacCentral. Stan was a true pioneer in the Mac industry, and a friend to many. He will be missed.


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04/18/2011 // Dallas, TX, USA // Press Release Service // WiredPRNews.com
Dallas, TX (Press Release Distribution News) The use of an online press release service and SEO press release distribution is an important tool that complements search engine optimization and search engine marketing. This form of press release allows a business to have more control about how their company information is distributed to the public. Online press release services, like WiredPRNews.com, provide SEO press release distribution that build online visibility, increase search engine optimization and ultimately, direct more people to the targeted website.
In a time where technology is so important and commonly used, using the internet as a medium to spread information is vital. As a leading online press release service offering SEO press release distribution, WiredPRNews.com acknowledges the fact that 34% of the general public go online for their news each day and 44% of Americans get their news from some type of mobile digital source. With statistics like these, it is important that businesses take advantage of an online press release service with this boom in technology. The actual use of newspapers, television and radio for the discovery of news has been on a steady decline over the past few years. Therefore, online press release service and SEO press release distribution is an easier and more direct way to spread information.
There are many advantages to using an online press release service with SEO press release distribution. Whether it be the high visibility, extensive distribution, news credibility or search engine optimization benefits, WiredPRNews.com recommends using this tool to distribute company information. Additionally, an online press release service with SEO press release distributionwork in conjunction with social media to allow news to become viral on the Internet. Word of mouth and social sharing are important and free forms of business exposure.
WiredPRNews.com offers widespread media coverage and SEO press release distribution for companies of all shapes and types. The affordable online press release service features major search engine indexing with Google news inclusion, targeted distribution to hundreds of partner sites and online news sources, and even offers personalized newsrooms. Companies using WiredPRNews.com for SEO press release distribution will have access to all top bloggers, journalists and consumers whom have the ability to become customers or company advocates. For more information on SEO press release distribution from a leading online press release service, visit www.WiredPRNews.com today.
Address: Dallas, TX
Url: Press Release Service


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The Galaxy Xcover 4 (SM-G390F), which received the Wi-Fi certification three weeks ago, has now appeared on Geekbench. As per the Geekbench listing, the SM-G390F seems to be running Android 7.0 Nougat using the 14nm Exynos 7570 processor and 2GB of RAM. It has been close to two years since the Galaxy Xcover 3 was unveiled, and its successor has long been due.
The Galaxy Xcover 4 would be the first smartphone to use the Exynos 7570 processor. The chipset, which was announced back in August 2016, features a quad-core Cortex-A53 CPU, Mali-T720 GPU, and a fully integrated Cat. 4 LTE 2CA modem. Since Samsung claims that the chipset supports up to 720p displays, there’s a high chance of the Galaxy Xcover 4 featuring a 720p or an even lower resolution screen.


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Though the launch of both Oculus VR and HTC/Valve’s VR headsets was exciting, it was marred by a number of issues – most notably delays in shipping. Until just recently, getting hold of either headset would mean weeks or even months of waiting. But no longer. HTC has announced that buying a Vive direct from its store will see it shipped out within 72 hours.
Although there are certainly arguments to be made about more Oculus Rifts being pre-ordered than HTC Vives (at least initially) it seems that now HTC’s manufacturing experience is coming to bear.
This two to three day shipping period that HTC is quoting is available in 24 countries around the world, making it easier than ever to get a hold of a consumer-grade VR headset. To help encourage its uptake, HTC has also expanded demo locations around the world, offering them in Microsoft Stores, Gamestops and Micro Centers.
Those locations will also begin carrying dedicated stock of their own shortly, with pre-orders from those locations starting to ship out this week.
“Since beginning pre-orders at the end of February and shipping in early April, we’ve seen incredible interest in Vive,” said Dan O’Brien, VP of VR at HTC, who we previously interviewed on the status of Oculus exclusives.
“Working with our retail partners has only enhanced that momentum because more people are able to try the only truly immersive virtual reality offering on the market today.”
Don’t expect this increased shipping to do much for the price, which still sits at $800 + shipping in the U.S.. It does however come with the headset, Lighthouse tracking stations, and the pair of motion controllers which make gesture interaction and room-scale VR possible.
Those were enough for us to hail it as the best VR hardware out there right now. Although it is still a technology for early adopters, and those with enough space to really appreciate it, there are now over 200 experiences and games to play around with, so there is plenty of content to try.
Do you own a Vive? If so, what’s your favorite experience so far?
- Apple’s secret VR headset just got revealed in a huge leak
- I streamlined my PC VR setup, and now I use it more than ever
- Here’s everything I learned using the HTC Vive XR Elite at CES 2023
- How the Vive XR Elite can do high-end VR in a half-pound headset
- This modular SteamVR controller fixes a major problem with VR controllers


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Showing his love! Kanye West, who is releasing his new album, Donda, on Friday, returned to Instagram on Tuesday, July 20, to show off a some bling — two necklaces honoring his children.
The 44-year-old rapper shares kids North, 8, Saint, 5, Chicago, 3, and Psalm, 2, with Kim Kardashian. The 40-year-old reality star filed for divorce in February after six years of marriage.
In the captionless Instagram post, West, who has 5.7 million followers, sported two gold chains, one thicker and one thinner. Each necklace has his children’s names written out in gothic font.
The jewelry seems to be a family gift, as West’s eldest son, Saint, was seen rocking a nearly identical necklace in a photo Kardashian posted to her feed earlier the same day.
While the heavy duty jewels were certainly the focal point of the slideshow, the rest of the fashion designer’s outfit was certainly statement making, too.
The “Gold Digger” singer wore a Bottega Veneta black bomber jacket, Yves Saint Laurent pleather pants, goggles, gloves, a massive ring, and — what appears to be his new go-to accessory — a ski mask.
West was previously spotted wearing a full-coverage cat print face mask at the Balenciaga fashion show earlier this month and a religious-themed covering while out and about in Paris in June.
It’s no surprise that fans were shocked by the Instagram post, due in part to the fact that the singer has taken a long hiatus from the social media platform.
Many pointed out that West’s return to the grid is tied to the impending release of his 10th studio album, Donda, on Friday, July 23.
“Donda we ready let’s GOOOO,” one excited fan wrote. Another added, “YEEZY SEASON APPROACHING,” while someone else chimed in: “THE KING IS BACK!”
Music may be one of West’s talents, but other fans were more focused on his status as a fashion icon.
“Need more Kanye fit pics,” a fan wrote. “He wearing leather pants again album already a classic.”
Aside from making moves in the music space, the Yeezy founder also has a collaboration with Gap in the works.
The YZY brand dropped it’s first-ever item on the rapper’s birthday, June 8. It was a $200 blue puffer coat dubbed the “Round Jacket.” The outerwear has no buttons, zippers, pockets or snaps.
Given that the item sold out within hours, it’s likely that the rest of the highly anticipated line will follow suit.
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HELSINKI (AP) — Nokia said Tuesday it's in advanced talks to buy the ailing French telecommunications company Alcatel-Lucent, but that there was no certainty about the outcome of the discussions.
In a brief statement, Nokia Corp. said the two companies are in negotiations "with respect to a potential full combination which would take the form of a public exchange offer by Nokia for Alcatel-Lucent."
Nokia stock plunged more than 6 percent in Helsinki to 7.26 euros in midday trading while Alcatel-Lucent, which has been losing money since its creation in 2006, saw its share price leap more than 12 percent in Paris. That put Alcatel-Lucent's market value at 12.2 billion euros ($12.9 billion).
The Finnish company gave no details of the talks and denied further comment except to say that a further announcement would be made when appropriate.
The former world top mobile phone maker, which struggled to compete with Apple's iPhone, Google Inc.'s Android operating system and cheaper handsets from Asia, has made a turnaround since selling off its lossmaking handset business to Microsoft a year ago.
Nokia now has three remaining sectors: networks, mapping services and technologies and patents. It expects growth this year in all of them after a good fourth quarter result in 2014, when it reported a net profit of 443 million euros ($502 million) and sales growth of nearly 10 percent to 3.8 billion euros.
Alcatel-Lucent, which has racked up billions of euros of losses and undergone repeated rounds of restructuring since the 2006 merger of France's Alcatel and U.S.-based Lucent Technologies, said in 2013 that it plans to lay off 10,000 workers. Last year it made a net loss of 118 million euros.


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The cloud technology will be pivotal in the transitional times when the pandemic has forced rapid changes in business and individual life styles, according to Werner Vogels, chief technology officer and vice chairman of U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon.com. “The cloud is built for uncertain times just like this,” Vogels said in a virtual session at the 21st World Knowledge Forum in Seoul invited to speak on the role of the cloud in a post-pandemic world. “The role the cloud will play in the future is similar to the role it plays today, that is to enable companies to get their ideas to market more quickly with less risk and the ability to scale their business.” Vogels noted business leaders need to make serious adjustment to the way they think about technology, culture and innovation, referring to COVID-19 as “a forcing function for significant change” in the way companies create products and organizations hire and develop their workforce. In the longer term, he said it will change “how a company thinks about culture and organizational structure and who within the organization will have the most impact on its success by democratizing influence to developers, engineers, and builders.” Vogels stressed “every company in the world is reassessing their business strategy” due to COVID-19. Many of them are accelerating cloud migration and modernization work, and others also are trying to gain the same type of agility to stay competitive and respond to challenges coming their way.
“The pandemic has been devastating but I`m convinced that it would have been much worse were it not for the technology that we have available today,” he emphasized. “The changes I foresee will primarily come about through culture and organizational structure changes with cloud at the center as an enabler to companies doing this (making batter technology decisions).”
“The concept of a company network will be forced to evolve. Cloud technologies that enable companies to secure their IP and assets while enabling their remote workforce will become critically important,” Vogels said, suggesting “take this time to invest in your workforce to get a solid cloud foundation that better future-proofs your business.” When asked his advice for the Korean companies seeking for digital transformation to stay competitive in the market, Vogels said, “the faster you will be able to be on solid footing for your digital transformation, the better.” “But as always, it’s now just about technology,” he added, “it is also about cultural change and make sure that you start thinking about how to create a culture of innovation, how to hire the right people that can help you make go through this digital transformation.”
Vogels expected business success will come from “faster innovation cycles” and thus companies should stay innovative, experiment frequently, and embrace risk-taking. To truly make this part of a company’s DNA with workforces becoming more distributed, he advised “microteams” that are small enough to move quickly and efficiently to solve a problem would be ideal in a post-pandemic and increasingly remote world.
By Lee Ha-yeon
[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business News Korea & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]


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Astech Projects Expands its Packaging Robotics and Automation Offering
News Feb 26, 2010
Astech Projects, has announced the appointment of John Roberts to expand its sales team within the Packaging Robotics and Consumer Goods Testing markets. Mr. Roberts assumes the post of Business Development Manager adding to Astech’s team of high calibre applications engineers.
With over 15 years of experience in the packaging industry, Mr. Roberts has built up a vast array of industry supplier/customer relationships. Astech are hoping to utilize his extensive experience and firmly establish Astech as a world class systems integrator within these highly specialized markets.
Anthony Moran, Director, Astech Projects, said “We are delighted to welcome John to the team. Recruiting him is part of a strategic strengthening of Astech’s offering for the packaging industry. He is highly regarded and respected within the industry and I am looking forward to having his expertise as Astech continues to expand.”
Arrow Poison Potential Male Birth ControlNews
Women have many options for oral contraceptives that are safe, effective and reversible, but despite decades of research, men have none. Now, scientists report a rat study that shows they finally have a good lead for a male birth control pill. It's based on ouabain, a plant extract that African warriors and hunters traditionally used as a heart-stopping poison on their arrows.READ MORE


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Burberry, British purveyor of luxury goods, has recorded a slowdown in underlying first quarter retail revenue growth in spite of the brand‘s iconic trench coats and checked scarves‘ sales remaining strong.
First-quarter growth was 8%, down slightly from the 11% growth in the previous three months offset by weaker demand in Asia, the company said this morning.
Sales in Hong Kong and mainland China were weak while Europe and America saw fared better. In a statement Burberry said that Japan had seen “exceptional growth, albeit off a small base”.
The Hong Kong market represents around 10% of Burberry’s total retail/wholesale sales and has become stagnant since pro-democracy protests gained momentum last year.
“While mindful that the external environment remains challenging, we will continue to focus on growth opportunities across channels, regions and products, with exciting plans for the year ahead” said Chief Exec Christopher Bailey.
The fashion and accessories retailer reported revenue in the three months to June 30 up 8% to £407m, below analysts‘ average forecasts.
Commenting on Burberry‘s performance, Will Hedden, a dealer at London Capital Group, said:
“One of Britain‘s flagship brands-abroad, the luxury fashion house is seeing a slowdown in growth as the year goes on. The underlying performance reads well, but the concern over a sharp fall in activity in Hong Kong and lacklustre growth on the Chinese mainland will worry investors that other signs of a slowdown in the region are now being exhibited in one of their favoured imports. Shares peaked in the first quarter and have struggled to show sustained resistance on the way down since. Full year performance will be impacted by how the brand deals with volatile currency movements.”


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Earlier this month, Kanye West tweeted a casting call asking for “multiracial women only,” that caused a stir among fans and critics alike. People took to twitter and the real world to criticize the statement that left entire communities out to dry.
“Kanye West asking for multiracial models kind of sends an anti-Black message,” said Andrew Jolivette, an American Indian professor at SF State who identifies as Louisiana Creole. “Saying he wants mixed performers sends the idea that Black is not beautiful.”
Being a non-Black person of color myself, I can’t speak for what is and what is not anti-Black; however, sentiments like West’s come off as biased.
West should know better than to further restrict people of color from their already very limited opportunities in the fashion world. The Fashion Spot reported that in the most recent fashion season only 25 percent of models cast in shows were models of color, while the remaining 75 percent were white.
Being such a successful Black man in pop culture has not been easy for West, from calling out George Bush during his presidency on live television to becoming public enemy number one after interrupting Taylor Swift. I’m disappointed and surprised that he’d use his platform to perpetuate something as detrimental as colorism, where lighter skin is favored over darker skin.
Preferring multiracial people to those who are not multiracial leaves out entire communities of people because they don’t measure up to the light skin standard West is aiming for. The lightest skin in minority communities typically exists in those who have a parent from a minority community (usually one with a darker skin tone) and a white parent.
It’s important to note that though half-White half-minorities have White privilege, they also are minorities, so their lives aren’t exactly easy. They still experience racism from those around them. But when Kanye and others continue to uplift half-White biracial individuals while also alienating monoracial individuals, the conversation of having a half-White privilege is one that needs to be had.
With Colin Kapernick refusing to stand during the national anthem and multiple killings of unarmed Black people by policemen raising racial tension in America, West’s request adds to this tension. Asking for “multiracial models only” implies that there’s something wrong with being unambiguously Black, Latino, Asian, or a person of any color that is not White.
“I think often the problem and what most people think of mixed is that most people always assume mixed is white and something else,” Jolivette said. “They forget that people aren’t trying to be better than somebody or that people don’t want to be something else.”
Even within minority communities being biracial will get you further than those who are not biracial because of the privilege that being white grants you. Multiracial individuals may share oppression with their monoracial community members, but having lighter skin grants them access to opportunities that they may not have had otherwise – like avoiding punishment by school officials or having less time in punishment while in elementary school.
West’s casting call also begs the question: where is the representation for double minority individuals? What about multiracial individuals who are half-Black and half-Latino? Or half-Latino and half-Asian? Or any combination that does not involve White? Do these types of models and people have the same kind of privilege that light skinned biracial people have, or are they just as underrepresented as monoracial individuals?
Artists like West and other trend setters should refrain from perpetuating industry standards that favor White individuals. Instead of following racist ideals they should use their power and influence to diversify the White-dominated entertainment industry.